Three Questions I am Asking Myself.

It is my goal to honour God in all that I do, and one of the things I have found that helps me stay on track is asking myself good questions. Here are a few of the questions I have been asking myself lately.

1. Is my relationship with God close and growing? I don't know about you but I can really get distracted by all kinds of good things, while missing out on God's things. You might think it is easier for a pastor to stay connected to God in relationship, but the truth is that I am always doing things that seem Godly, but often times I am doing them for others and not for God. I study like crazy for Sunday morning and for youth, but I need to spend time with God just because I love Him. One of the key indicators for me that my relationship with Him is going off the rails is when I stop enjoying ministry, and that reminds me to connect with the reason I do ministry. How is your relationship with God going?
2. How am I spending my time? I am one of those people that has two gears, full throttle or asleep. and many times as life gets busy I start to lose track of how I am investing my time (That's right, investing) of all the things that we have, time is one area of life where we can't get a do-over. Once time is spent we can never get it back and once spent we must give an account for it. again we can spend our time on good things and miss out on the God things. You might be thinking that I am saying that you can never relax but that is not at all what I am saying. What I am saying is that I need to make sure that I take time with Kristine, to just shut down ministry for a while and enjoy our relationship. I need to spend time with my sons, (it seems like yesterday that they were babies and now they are almost men) to connect with them and share my values and my heart with them. I need to stop wasting time doing good things and invest time doing God things. How about you how are you spending your time?
3. Who are the people God has put in my life, and am I connecting with them enough? I strongly believe that we all need three types of people in our lives, those whom we are helping up, those who are peers and those who are helping us up. I need to ask myself, who am I helping? That list can keep me pretty busy at times and I really enjoy these relationships. I also need people that are my friends, those people that I can just kick back and relax with. people that I can go to a movie with or have coffee with or just hang out and do nothing with. I also need people that can help me. People that have been where I am and have moved to new levels, people that can let me no that it is going to be OK and that I will survive to see tomorrow. people that will help me survive through the trial so I can see the victory! Who are the people in your life, and are you connecting with them?

Have a great one!

Pastor Appreciation!

It is Pastor appreciation month in October and I just want to thank the people in my life that have been pastoring me and pouring into my life.

1. Pastor Paul thank you so much for challenging me and helping me to become who God has called me to be. Thank you for believing in me even when I wasn't sure that I believed in myself, you and Elaine are a blessing to Kristine and I and we wouldn't want to do life without you.
2. Pastor Steve and Beth, thank you for all the advice and encouragement that you have given to us. Thanks for asking us good questions about our personal lives and ministry. Thank you for sharing your time and your life with us. thanks for taking care of us at conferences, and for giving us the opportunity to connect with amazing leaders. Thanks for caring about us and our sons.

I am so thankful for all the other people that mentor me and I just want to say thanks to Pastor Peter Dempsey, Pastor Ted Yuke, Len Zoeteman, and Kevin and Sheila Gerald for all you do for me. You are all awesome leaders in God's Kingdom!

Empty Chair

Tonight I get to hang out with our young people for our Thursday night meeting and I am pretty excited about what God is doing. When I was at the Creative Church Conference on Monday in Albany, Ed Young said something that rang so true to me, especially after our Sunday service. He said "Our church is all about the empty chair". what he was saying was, that everything that they plan, everything that they say is with the passion to reach one more person for Christ. this is so important, I think that if we are going to fulfill the great Commission and the call we have as a church then we also must learn to plan around the empty chair.

So who has God put on your heart lately? who are you reaching out to, and trying to lead to Christ? How important is it to you to reach the people that Jesus died for? Think about where you sit in church on Sunday, is there an empty seat near you? Will you take the responsibility of filling that seat this week? Pray and ask God who you can invite, and let's expect God to do great things this weekend!

Sunday Night in Albany

Well we just arrived in Albany New York after a six hour drive. Well what a great day! We have such a great bunch of team leaders at Jubilee and it has been a fun day of travelling with them. We are here for the Creative Church Conference put in by Ed Young of Fellowship Church inn Grapevine Texas. I am pretty excited about what God is doing at Jubilee right now and really enjoyed being in the house this morning. There was a hum in the foyer and a feeling of excitement in the foyer. Here are some things that are exciting me right now.

1. I feel like we are all begining to believe that God is doing something good, and that we are all willing to do our part in the goals we have set.
2. The new look, First Impressions team is really awesome and they are creating the environment of excitement and welcome that we have been working toward. Good job team!
3. we have been having quite a few visitors start to settle in and make Jubilee their home church, and I just want to give all of you a warm welcome to the family!
4. I was relieved to share the things that God has put in my heart as far as future vision and it also feels good to be officially working on transitioning to our new site.
5. Please, please, please start asking God who you should invite to church next week, I believe that God wants to touch people but He wants to work through us.

Well we have five guys in our room and most of them want to go to sleep now so I will keep you posted on the conference later this week. Have a great one!

Thanksgiving!

Wow! It is already Thanksgiving weekend, where did the year go? Well what are you thankful for? I think one of the main characteristics of a Christ follower should be a thankful heart with words to express it! so why don't you take a few minutes just to stop and give thanks to God for all that He has given to you. Here are a few things that I am thankful for.

1. I am thankful for a loving God who made a way for me to be forgiven and set free from sin, and Jesus His son who followed through on His plan of redemption, and the Holy Spirit that empowers me to live for God and to share His love with others!
2. I am thankful for the amazing woman that He gave me to do life with, and for her love and passion for the kingdom of God, our family and for me. I love you so much Kristine!
3. I am thankful for my sons, Levi and Logan, they are my greatest treasures and they make me so proud of them. I can see Jesus in them and I love them so much!
4. I am thankful for my parents, because the taught me to live my dreams and to never settle just because my dreams seem impossible!
5. I am thankful for Kristine's parents because they are so good to us and their love for Jesus is a great heritage for my sons.
6. I am thankful for all my brothers and sisters (Natural and In laws) because God has given me a great gift of friendship through them.
7. I am thankful for all the awesome people that I get to do life with at Jubilee, because most of them are like family to me, and because we are going to rock this community for Jesus together.
8. I am thankful that I have no lack and that I get to bless others from time to time.
9. I am thankful that I am healthy
10. I can keep going forever but you get the idea.

Tomorrow is going to be an amazing day at Jubilee so pray, invite someone, and come expecting God to do something good!

Thanksgiving!

Live a Legacy!

Hey dads! I was preparing for my "Wild at Heart" Life Group yesterday and while doing that there was a lot of questions about what your father was like. This was an interesting topic for me so I got pretty absorbed in the moment. I had a great father and mostly my memories of him are nothing but good so the experience really stirred up some great memories. I wrote a letter to myself on the day my father passed out of this world to the next, so that I could capture my feelings about him before they started to fade. I thought I would like to share some of the things I wrote that day with you and make a couple of points, so here goes.

Today my father died.... I feel very blessed to have been the son of such a great man of God. He taught me to live a life of passion, to live from my heart. He taught me to love God with all my heart, soul, and strength. He taught me to love a woman forever. He taught me to laugh and to cry. I grew up in a home where my father loved us and cared for us, his children, more than he did his own life. It is my prayer and my life's mission to become as great a man as my dad......... as I look back on on his life I am so encouraged to see how one humble man can change so many lives, one life at a time. He touched so many lives so deeply, especially mine.
(Written December 31st in Monterrey International Airport)

Here is a few of the take aways for me.

1. Your kids will not always remember what you said, but they will remember how you lived.
2. When you are generous with your life, your children will be left with a legacy, and not just a memory.
3. Being others centered rather than self centered will have eternal consequences.
4. Loving your wife passionately in front of your family will give your children the courage to do the same.
5. Living for a cause will give you the octane to overcome every obstacle.

My dad was no saint, but I have never known anyone who loved Jesus more than he did. Now that I am a pastor and father I understand the incredible challenge of balancing life in such a way that would inspire your child to feel the way I feel about my dad.

My challenge to you, men, is that you live for God with passion, that you love your wife forever, that you love your children more than you love your own self. Last but not least, I challenge you to live a sacrificial life that would make Jesus attractive to the world around you. I know that this is a tall order, but I believe in you, and more than that God believes in you!

Sunday Night Reflections!

What a great day today! I am so excited about what God is doing, I feel so blessed to be a part of it! Here are some of the great things that happened today!

1. I got news about Jeremiah today. He is doing great on his tour and Is really sensing that people are praying for him. By the way don't stop praying for him, he is on a mission for our country but also on a mission to reach lost people. So pray!
2. Heard some great reports of restored lives today. Couples getting back together, families coming back from crisis to have a stronger family. It is awesome to see that God is working in the marriages in the house and building something lasting and strong.
3. I have had a ton of comments from our men, about how they have been challenged through our "Why" series, and I am expecting a great service next week as we wrap it up with "Why Give"! I love the guys in our church, they love to be challenged.
4. Excellent worship this morning! I am so thankful for our worship team. I could really feel the presence of Jesus as we worshipped Him.
5. Pastor Bob showed the servant heart of our leaders, as He launched our parking team this morning! You are awesome Bob, thanks.
6. God is bringing new people to the church every week, and I am so excited about the new people He is bringing our way!
7. I love Jubilee and I feel so honoured that God has called me to pastor here,

Have a great night all!

Life Groups

Last week we kicked off our first week of Life groups for the fall, and it was a great week from what I have heard. If you want to get more connected with people in the church, or if you are looking for a way to introduce a friend to Jesus, then Life Groups are the place to connect. Even though we had sign up Sunday last week, you will have the opportunity to sign up in the entrance of the church this week. I encourage all of you to get involved!

Tomorrow we are continuing with the "Why" series and I believe that God has done great things in our lives so far, but He isn't done yet. Please pray for the service tomorrow and ask God to allow us to lead many to Him. I also want to encourage you to make a phone call tonight and invite someone with you. Have a great night!